THE SOUTHWORTH PLANETARIUM
207-780-4249   www.usm.maine.edu/planet
70 Falmouth Street   Portland, Maine 04103
43.6667° N                   70.2667° W 
Altitude:  10 feet below sea level
Founded January 1970
Julian Date: 245911.16
2019-2020:  CVIII
           "I have an existential map.  It has 'You are here' written all over it."
                         -Stephen Wright


THE DAILY ASTRONOMER
Monday, March 2, 2020
March 2020 Night Sky Calendar Part I

March has arrived!
Yes, we know you know that, but we're shouting about it because this month spring returns with a resounding bang. Well, ok, in New England it generally returns with a pathetic whimper barely audible beneath the meter high snow shrouds.  All the same, astronomical winter is now on borrowed time and we couldn't be happier at the prospect of spring's imminent arrival.
While we can never be assured that warmth will immediately follow the equinox's arrival, we'll at least know what to expect in the heavens.    The Great Square of Pegasus vanishes into the dusk while Leo the Lion ascends in the eastern evening sky.    Orion looms high in the south at nightfall early this month, but starts the evening well over in the west by late March.   Early risers can not only admire the three naked-eye superior planets, Mars, Jupiter and Saturn, they will also behold the magnificent Summer Triangle rising in the eastern sky: a harbinger of the sultry season we all yearn to experience.

The moon makes many appearances in this night sky calendar, as we would expect it to, being the night sky's fastest mover.    We're also going to divide the calendar into two parts, the second of which will prove more dense than the first.


MONDAY, MARCH 2:  FIRST QUARTER MOON
This is the preferred phase for casual moon watchers: the first quarter moon often rises around noon and sets at midnight.   One can observe it even before nightfall.  Otherwise, by early evening it is high in the sky.   Notice that this first quarter moon is close to the summer solstice position along the ecliptic and will therefore remain above the horizon far longer than twelve hours.   In Portland, the first quarter moon will rise at 10:13 a.m. and won't set until 1:31 a.m. tomorrow morning.   Ample time to admire our closest natural satellite.

FRIDAY, MARCH 6:  MOON NEAR BEEHIVE STAR CLUSTER
The waxing gibbous moon (87% illuminated) appears to slide by the Praesepe Star Cluster (also known as the "Beehive") this evening.   While the moon will be quite bright owing to the late stage of its gibbous phase, this cluster will still remain visible.    Praesepe is the only prominent feature in the faint zodiacal constellation Cancer the Crab.

MONDAY, MARCH 9: FULL MOON
What names HAVEN'T been applied to the March full moon?    So much is happening in nature right now as the land prepares for its vernal rejuvenation.    Worm moon: as the earthworms are now inching their way through the thawing ground.   Sap moon: as hearty northerners tap their maple trees and then stand over open flame on brutally cold mornings  while the sap bubbles in cauldrons, eventually to transform into syrup.  Bud moon: as buds sprout out of branches.   Or the sewing crops moon: for those people who live in regions with growing seasons longer than 18 minutes.     And so forth and so on.     Take any spring activity you can imagine and feel free to apply it to today's full moon.

TUESDAY, MARCH 10: MOON AT PERIGEE
Lest we forget:  a SUPER MOON.  This term, which has only come into vogue within the last few years, refers to a moon that is full around the time it is at its closest point, called "perigee."   Yesterday's full moon can certainly be called a super moon as the moon reaches perigee today.  The Super moon is bigger and brighter than ordinary full moons.  However, one would be hard pressed to truly notice the difference. Today, the moon will be 357,122 kilometers from Earth at closest approach.

MONDAY, MARCH 16:  LAST QUARTER MOON


To subscribe or unsubscribe from the Daily Astronomer: